William h



(N0 Mmfel.)

f-W. H. PITT.

I "FRICTION MATCH. No'. 256,920. Patented Apr. 25, 1 882.

WZinepsei UNITED STATES PATENT O FICE.

WILLIAM H. PITT, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

"FRICTION-MATCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 1\ To. 256,920, dated April25, 1882.

Application filed November12, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. PiTT, of the city of Buffalo, in thecounty of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Friction-Matches, of which the following is aspecification.

Infriction-matchesas ordinarily manufac' tured the wooden splints areequally combus tible from end to end, and when the match is lighted theflame gradually approaches theend which is held between the fingers, andthe match has to be thrown away before the splintis entirely consumed.hen the match is not entirely extinguished before it is lhrownaway theremaining portion of the match is frequently allowed to burn outwherever it falls. This is not only a frequent cause of conflagrations,but renders the use of such matches inconvenient, as they are liable toburn the tingers of persons using the same.

The object of this invention is to limit or confine the combustibilityof the match to that portion of the splint which is not held between thefingers, and which is sufficient for the ordinary purposes for whichmatches are lighted,

' thereby preventing that portion of the splint which is held betweenthe fingers from taking fire, and enabling a person to hold the matchuntil the combustible portion of the splint is entirely consumed and theflame completelyextinguished without any effort on the part of 'theperson using the match, but simply by the exhaustion of the combustiblematerial.

Myinvention consists, to that end, of a friction-match having thatportion of its splint which is designed to be held between the fingersrendered incombustible, while the remainder of the splint retains itsoriginal combustible condition.

The annexed drawing represents my improved match, the portion renderedincombustible being indicated by shading.

In preparing my improved matches I coat or impregnate that portion ofthe splint which is intended to be incombustible with any of thewell-known substances which have the prop erty of rendering woodincombustible at the ordinary heat produced by the burning of thecombustible portion of the match. I have found that either silicate ofsoda or tungstate of soda dissolved in water to form a saturatedsolution, which, when the ends of a splint are dipped therein, willrender the same sufficiently incombustible to resist the flame of anyordinary match.

The solution maybe made of sufficient thickness to form a paste whichwill form a coating; but I have found from experiment that a thinsaturated solution will answer the purpose, and is preferred.

The matches can be treated with the solution either before or after theyare dipped into the igniting composition, and the two operations ofsupplying the matches with the igniting composition at one end and ofrendering their opposite ends incombustible by immersion or treatmentwith the solution may be carried on successively without taking thematches out of the frame in which they are held, thereby renderin g theproduction of my improved matches very simple, very easy, and avoiding amatcrial increase in the cost of production.

My improved match will take fire as readily as any ordinaryfriction-match, as that portion of the splint to which the ignitingcomposition is applied is perfectly combustible, or at least ascombustible as the corresponding portion of an ordinary friction-match.When the match has been ignited the combustion continues until the flamereaches that portion of the match which has been rendered incombustible,when the further progress of the flame is arrested and the flamegraduallysubsides until the combustible portion of the match is entirelyconsumed, when the flame expires because of the absence of furthercombustible material, and without any effort on the part of the personholding the match. The match can therefore be safely held between thefingers until the flame has died out, thereby avoiding the danger ofmatches being thrown away hastily without being first completelyextinguished. If, however, the match should be thrown away before thecombustible portion of the splint is entirely consumed, the combustionwill not continue much longer, because the greater portion of that partof the match which is thrown away is incombustible, and the match willsimply burn until the remainder of the combustible part of the splinthas been consumed. The danger of partly-consumed matches set- ICC tingfire to surrounding objects of combustible pound and the opposite endrendered incombustible, and with an intermediate portion capable ofcombustion, whereby the flame is confined to the combustible portion ofthe splint r 5 and prevented from extending to the non-combustibleportion, which is held between the fingers.

W. H. PITT. Witnesses:

JN0. J. BONNER, EDW. J. BRADY.

